The Dragon and His Boy
by The Glass Sea
Summary: AU. The dragons are weapons to the Vikings of Berk. It's Hiccup's job to turn the wild beasts into creatures the Vikings can use. When Hiccup helps Toothless, the dragon bonds to him. Hiccup's about to be plunged into to Viking war with his dragon. Lots of fluff between Hiccup and Toothless.
1. Night Fury

**Disclaimer: if I owned HtTYD, I wouldn't be posting it on Fanfictiom, get my drift?**

**Note: my chapters are all around this short, but it allows updates to be more frequent. So I hope you all don't mind.**

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**Chapter One: Night Fury**

Hiccup sighed as he finished filling the last of bins with fish. He was thoroughly exhausted, and ready to curl up in bed. He turned to put the bucket back on the hook when the great stone doors shook on their hinges as his father stormed in. Hiccup shrunk into the shadows. Stoick didn't come into the place where they kept the dragons except when he was bringing a new dragon in, or looking for Hiccup. It was almost always the latter.

Stoick glanced around for his son. "Hiccup! We need that cage! And the tools! Quickly!"

Hiccup took off though the dark rows of cells without a word. His stomach was twisted up into knots thinking about what his father was going to do. He led Stoick into the back and up to an empty cage. The big man grabbed it and carried it out effortlessly, avoiding the sharp wires and glass sticking out from every odd angle.

"Get the tools, Hiccup." His father ordered while stomping back outside. Hiccup went to the back of the building and using a large stool, reached towards a shelf and retrieved a box. He couldn't bring himself to even look in it. He hurried after Stoick.

The night breeze left a trail of chills across his arms as he stepped outside. A dragon, a large black one, was surrounded by Vikings, all trying to corner it into the barbed wire cage. It snarled ferociously as a axe came close. Hiccup sets down the box near them and starts to slip back into the shadows. Stoick always wanted his son to participate in dragon taming, but Hiccup could get out of it by becoming invisible. It was the only thing he was good at, hiding from his problems.

As soon as he was far enough from the shouting Viking men and their cruel manners towards the snarling dragon, he ran.

* * *

"Hiccup!" The boy's eyes snapped open at the sound of his name and the heavy footsteps coming up the stairs. "Hiccup!"

The whole floor shook as his father climbed the last of the stairs. Hiccup rolled out of bed, and yanked shirt on as the door flung open. "Son! Get up!" Stoick roared.

"I'm up, Dad." Stoick didn't miss the hint of anger in his son's voice.

"You should have been up a long time ago!"

"Does it really hurt to let me sleep in just once?"

Hiccup regretted his words quickly enough. Stoick's mustache quivered in anger. Hiccup thought he was going to explode but instead Stoick retreated down the stairs, shutting the door behind him.

Hiccup stared. His father had never been so calm when dealing with him. He shrugged and pulled on his boots. He slid into his furry yak vest before escaping out the window. As he climbed down the side of the house (easy, since they were lumpy and rarely made to last), he got a good view of the sunrise.

Hiccup watched for a while, the way it made the freezing sea turn a deep gold and the peaks of the mountains pink. He wished he had his sketchbook with him. Finally he took off across the island to where they kept the dragons. It was his job to keep them healthy and fed before auction. There was one tomorrow, so he'd be scrubbing a lot of dragons today.

He entered the large building. It was dark, and he grabbed a torch and walked down the rows of cages, lighting torches along the walls as he went. Dragons stirred in their cages. Hiccup set down the torch in a stand and grabbed a bucket of fish. He started with the Terrors, who were already squawking and purring. He knelt by the large cage and stuck a hand in. "Morning guys."

Two dozen Terrors all pushed up against the bars, trying to win his affection. Hiccup smiled and carefully opened up the cage door and got in with them, making sure to shut it behind them. He started handing out fish to all of the Terrors crowding his feet. The little dragons were the cutest and by far the most affectionate. He would miss them when they were auctioned off.

He continued his feeding round with the Nadders, the Gronkles, the Zipplebacks, and lastly the two Nightmares they kept. All of the bigger dragons were muzzled, and when Hiccup freed them they were too intent on eating then trying to burn him alive.

When he had finished, Hiccup returned to the back. There was that new dragon to tend too. He took a whole bucket of fish, and squeezed though the row of cages to get to the staircase. It descended deep into the ground. Hiccup lit the torches along the way.

Stoick always put the new dragons down here. Isolated and alone in darkness and silence.

Hiccup heard the Night Fury before he saw it. A snort, then a high pitched keening wail. The whole cage rattled, and then a hiss of pain as a sharp piece of metal slid under a scale.

Hiccup approached the cage.

The black dragon was at least four times his size, and his acidic green eyes glowed in the dim light of the torch. Jagged cuts from where axes and swords had bit though scales showed pink and bloody, and there were quite a few holes in his wings. Hiccup sighed. How did dad expect him to care for dragons when he injured them so badly?

The Night Fury's eyes were now fixed on him. Hiccup knelt by the cage of thorns and started talking. The dragon was obviously terrified and usually talking to in a soothing tone for a little helped them to calm down. Hiccup told the Night Fury about how he had breakfast, and that everything would be okay, and how sorry he was that he had been caught, and about the different types of fish that he had. Finally the wails diminished into a whine, and Hiccup set a few fish on the cage floor. The dragon approached and sniffed at it.

Hiccup slid his hands though the mess of bars, avoids the sharp points of metal as he reached for the dragons neck, where the muzzle would come undone.

The dragon shrunk back, the high keening returning. Hiccup's heart broke. "What did Dad do to you?"

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i**m back! Yay!**

**If you leave a review- feel free to list some Disney and Dreamworks characters in it! I'm planning something big, so if you'd like them to appear in a new story then please tell me! Humanoid only, please! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Stars

**Wow! Such ****absolutely lovely reviews! After reading all of them- I went back and added so much more into this chapter! Thank all of you so much! **

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**Chapter Two: Stars**

"It's just you and me now, bud." Hiccup opened up the door into the arena.

The black dragon had been here for a whole day and didn't freak out when Hiccup reached for his muzzle anymore. Now, since all the dragons were gone after the auction, Hiccup was going to use today to work with him.

Hiccup had freed the dragon from his cage of thorns, and leading him by one of the ropes still attached to his leg, had guided him upstairs and though the rows of cages.

The Night Fury slithered out, and started looking for escapes. There were none. In the thick, wire mesh at the top of the arena, there were no holes big enough to fly though, even if he could fly. The doors behind him only led into the sicking darkness where he had been trapped for so long. The only other entrance was a wood gate that he wouldn't be able to break down without fire. And on a strict diet of fish, that meant no fire.

Hiccup knew the Night Fury needed medical attention. He approached the dragon slowly. The Night Fury didn't cower. Hiccup knelt, and held out a fish. The dragon slowly came towards him, and opened a toothless mouth.

"Toothless?" Hiccup frowned. "I could've swore you had-" Pearly white razors were revealed. "-teeth."

The dragon gulped down the fish. Hiccup smiled. At least he was eating. He reached forwards to touch the dragon, but he shied away. Hiccup sighed. "Come on, bud. We need to get your tail cleaned up. And your wings. And almost everywhere else." The dragon simply walked away, exploring the arena.

Hiccup finally got close enough to the Night Fury, but the dragon's eyes narrowed and he growled softly. Hiccup slowly stretched out a hand. "It's okay, bud. I just need to clean all that gunk up. Trust me." The dragon allowed Hiccup to touch him, gently before darting off.

Hiccup shrugged. It was a start.

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"So how's Hiccup doing with the beast?"

The Great Hall was filled with merrymaking, even long after the sun had set. The Chief of the Hooligans was sitting at a table with Gobber and Spitelout and a few other of his best men.

At the mention of his son, Stoick sighed. "He hasn't been home since the auction. He'd rather be with that wild creature then his own father." Stoick turned to look at his old friend sadly. "I just don't know what to do with him, Gobber."

Gobber smiled sadly and nodded.

"He argues with me over everything. He treats me like I'm the source of all his problems, is it too much to ask for a little respect."

Gobber shrugged. "He's a boy, Stoick."

"I say a good beating will fix 'em right up." Spitelout chimed in.

Stoick wondered at that. He had never laid a finger on his son- he was scared he would break, but maybe that was what the boy needed.

"I'm sure Hiccup just needs some time. You know how he is around auction day."

Stoick nodded. "You're probably right, Gobber."

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"See? That's better, isn't it?" Hiccup gave Toothless a ginger pat on the nose.

It was truly amazing what a little one on one with Toothless had done. It had taken all day yesterday and the whole night, and all day today.

Hiccup had dubbed the dragon Toothless, for his unique ability to sheath his teeth, like a cat sheathed their claws.

Toothless sniffed at his tail, which was wrapped in thick gauze. He looked back at the human, who gave him another fish. "Oh, Toothless. I wish I could free you. You deserve to be free. No wonder you evaded capture for so long."

Hiccup pulled a few bandages out of his bag, and a jar of what looked like wax. Still only using slow movements, the boy inspected a large jagged cut under the scales where a spear or axe had penetrated. He dipped two fingers in the balm and then slid them along the cut. He froze when Toothless snarled. The black dragon stayed still, so Hiccup continued to apply the soothing disinfectant. When the boy was satisfied with his work, he patched it up with a bandage handwoven from dragonnip. It was the only kind of bandage that the dragons had ever allowed to stay on for longer then, well, a minute. That was what he and Mom had found out when they-

_No. _

No thoughts of _her._

Toothless sniffed at it, pupils dilating. Hiccup grinned, pushing all previous thoughts aside. "Smells good, doesn't it?" He dug around in the bag for a loose blade and presented it to the dragon. Toothless joyfully sniffed at it while Hiccup stitched up his wings. It had to have hurt, but the dragonnip was completely preoccupying the Night Fury.

Hiccup yawned, sticking his supplies back into his medical bag. "I'll check up on you tomorrow, okay bud?" Hiccup turned to meet the gaze of the Night Fury, who appeared to be saddened by this statement. "As much as I hate to put you back in a cage, I need to go sleep."

The dragon seemed to understand, and Hiccup knew that he was probably imagining things. Hiccup stood slowly to his feet, and the Night Fury padded behind him, much to Hiccup's relief. Toothless' eyes narrowed as they entered the darkness, but Hiccup didn't go to the steps into the darkness. Instead, he got a cage right next to the door with a large water bowel and fresh fish. It wasn't the most comfortable, but it was the best Hiccup could do.

"I'll leave the door open." Hiccup said, after locking the cage.

He was true to his word and didn't shut the door, allowing Toothless a view of the mesh covered arena and the stars.

It almost hurt to see them, like they were mocking him and the freedom he had once had.

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**Question: Any ideas on what kind of nutrient or food or whatever that gives dragons their fire? I'd like to hear yours, I haven't decided where I'm going with that yet!**

**Thank you again, wonderful people of fanfiction!**


	3. Not Tonight

**Thank you reviewers! Love you all! HAVE SOME CAKE**

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**Chapter Three: Not Tonight**

"DAD!"

Stoick. who was enjoying the last little bit of ale that Gobber had brought him "to help ya concentrate", looked up. He was still trying to write that treaty between Berk and Berserk, and it was just as hard as ever.

And now his son was adressing him loudly, angerily, something that never happened unless-

Hiccup stormed into the house, green eyes blazing.

"He's _dead_. You _killed_ him."

"Hiccup..."

"You KILLED him! Did you think I wouldn't notice?"

"Son..." Stoick reached towards his son. "Hiccup, I..."

Hiccup lept back. "No, Dad. Your words aren't going to fix it this time. You _can't_ fix this. You can't fix it, because it's _your_ fault!"

The words were spat at Stoick like venom. He watched in a stunned silence as his son ran past him, running back outside.

With a sigh, the Viking Chief sat down heavily. Everything he did in his son's eyes was wrong. He had been angry. He had needed to kill something. That dragon had just been the first thing in sight. He felt a pang when he remembered his wife's similar reaction when-

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Hiccup held the still carcass of the dragon in his arms. He tried to hold in the tears, and took a deep breath.

Sharpshot had been the sweetest and cutest Terror he had ever seen. The first Terror that he had ever deciced to keep for himself. Sharpshot had been injured, a wing missing as well as a leg, when Stoick had brought back the first catch of dragons after the auction. Hiccup knew his father would have killed it if he had noticed, because no one wanted a dragon who couldn't fly. Besides Toothless, but that was only because he was a Night Fury.

Toothless nudged against the boy's side, and that was it. Hiccup's dam of tears broke.

Choked sobs escaped him and he slid down to his knees, hugging Sharpshot's body to his chest. He wasn't even there for the Terror when he died, he had been alone in pain, slowly dying in the abandoned forge. Hiccup cried in complete misery.

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The Night Fury could have just ran away. He could have ran away hundreds of times, but ever since that boy had saved him from a lot of pain at the hands of those Vikings, Toothless couldn't bear to leave him.

Not at the mercy of the one Hiccup called Dad.

Hiccup had dropped the rope that was tied around Toothless' neck about halfway up the mountain, but the Night Fury just walked alongside him. The rope really wouldn't stop Toothless if he wanted to escape, and they both knew it.

And now, here they were, the boy mourning the loss of a small Terror, and here he was, the great Night Fury, standing there and doing nothing. Parental instincts must have kicked in, because soon Toothless had his wings around the Viking and Hiccup grabbed onto Toothless' front leg and cried.

When the tears stopped, together they dug a grave for their lost friend. Hiccup placed flowers and some dragonnip on the overturned earth. As the sun sunk over the horizon, the boy latched onto the only thing he had left. Toothless.

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"Daddy?"

Stoick could almost hear his seven-year-old son's voice and shame washed over him.

"Daddy, why did you hurt all the dragons? I can't find Mommy to help them get better." The memory was just as clear, eight years later, as ever. Stoick closed his eyes. He didn't want to remember. He grabbed his mug and headed to the Great Hall. Some more beer would clear his head.

Or more likely, just wash all regrets away in a drunken stupor.

Tonight was different. When Toothless had crawled back into his cage, Hiccup didn't leave. Instead, he went to the back and grabbed a thick wool blanket. Toothless cocked his head curiously as the boy steps into the cage with him. "You don't mind if I stay here with you tonight, do you bud?" Hiccup asked, giving the Night Fury a scratch behind the ears.

Hiccup arranged the blanket over himself, using one of Toothless' legs as a pillow. "I couldn't stand it- going back home to face Dad... not tonight."

Toothless snorted, ruffling the auburn locks. Hiccup smiled. "Good night, Toothless."

The Night Fury watched the human's breathing even out, amazed. The trust that this human has in him is staggering. He was completely content sleeping in the arms of a predator that could kill him with one swipe. Toothless found it even more astonishing that he was compleatly at ease with the human.

He had been brought low.

But he couldn't really bring himself to care.

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**I cried when I wrote this. Is that bad? XD**


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